1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printing system in which a terminal apparatus and a printing apparatus are interconnected via a network, a printing apparatus preferably used in this printing system, a print setting method, and a computer readable recording medium having a print setting program stored therein to make a computer execute processing.
2. Description of the Related Art
The following description sets forth the inventor's knowledge of related art and problems therein and should not be construed as an admission of knowledge in the prior art.
Usually, a print setting is configured by a printer driver installed on a user's using terminal apparatus that is connected to a printing apparatus via a network, when the printing apparatus prints out print data received from the terminal apparatus. Alternatively, a print setting is configured by a printing method that is called as “PDF direct printing” which is heretofore known, for example.
In such cases described above, a print controlling code such as a PJL command that is appropriate for the print setting, is generated by an application installed on the terminal apparatus, and the generated print controlling code is transmitted to the printing apparatus, and then the printing apparatus performs printing according to the print controlling codes.
Here is an art disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Laid-open Patent Publication No. H11-203086, in which a print setting is stored and administered in a printing apparatus and an operation to call the print setting is performed on a terminal apparatus by using identification information, and the print setting is used for printing.
However, with a conventional system in which a print controlling code is generated on terminal apparatuses, each of the terminal apparatuses needs to have an exclusive application for a printing apparatus. Thus, users bother to manually install an exclusive application for a printing apparatus on their terminal apparatuses, when another terminal apparatus is provided in the system or when a new OS is installed on their terminal apparatuses. Similarly, in the case in which a plurality of printing apparatuses are employed, users bother to manually install exclusive applications for the respective printing apparatuses on their terminal apparatuses, which would be troubles on users. Further, when there is a version update to an exclusive application for a printing apparatus, users bother to manually update the exclusive application installed on their terminal apparatuses, which would be troubles on users also from the view of maintenance.
In addition, developers of a printing apparatus are required to develop tools (applications) for terminal apparatuses so that they could work suitably according to a unique function of the printing apparatus. For example, if a printing apparatus is enabled to perform a prohibition process to prohibit concurrent usage of a plurality of specific functions (prohibit folding of index sheets, for example), the developers are required to develop applications for terminal apparatuses so that they also could perform this prohibition process. That means, even for one same objective process, different configurations need to be established for different apparatuses that are respective printing apparatuses and respective terminal apparatuses, which would be a large amount of load. In addition, establishing different configurations for one same objective process may cause tricky mismatches.
And the art mentioned above, which is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Laid-open Patent Publication No. H11-203086, does not get rid of these troubles that users and developers suffer from.
The description herein of advantages and disadvantages of various features, embodiments, methods, and apparatus disclosed in other publications is in no way intended to limit the present invention. Indeed, certain features of the invention may be capable of overcoming certain disadvantages, while still retaining some or all of the features, embodiments, methods, and apparatus disclosed therein.